Mind Over Matter
by QueenAU
Summary: Ally is a genius. She can think like the criminal she needs to catch. Austin's her partner that protects and assists her in her cases- the Watson to her Holmes. Read about Ally's thrilling, dangerous cases with Austin. Will all those serial killers and other convicts she helped put in jail stop? Or will they dull in comparison to the new enemy she has to face? Detective AU
1. Chapter 1

The grand house was swarmed with police officers. Yellow tape marked the home as a crime scene, and any curious passerby were driven away from the area. Two distressed adults were speaking to the head inspector when the man noticed two figures making their way to the house. He excused himself from the couple and turned to the duo.

"Detective Dawson," the inspector greeted the woman then nodded to the man beside her, "and Mr. Moon."

The woman laughed. "It's just Ally, Inspector George. You know I'm not a real detective."

"You might as well be. Now, let's get to business." George turned serious as he handed over the folder he was holding. Ally opened it and scanned the documents.

"A kidnapper?" Austin asked, looking over Ally's shoulder.

"Yes, the children of some very important people too." The inspector tilted his head towards the couple from before. "Heads of the largest butchering companies, Mr. and Mrs. Wyner. The twin girls disappeared around midnight, snatched right out of their beds without a trace of where they could be now."

Ally nodded with that look in her eyes. "Right. May I go inside to take a look?"

"Of course."

* * *

Austin and Ally stepped into the luxurious house of the wealthy Wyners. The house was as expensive looking on the outside as it was on the inside. It was elegant and full of furnishings that were probably worth more than a year's salary. Austin whistled in awe.

"You think the culprit wants money?" Austin asked the detective.

Ally frowned, deep in thought. "Maybe...but they would have requested a ransom by now."

"True. Do you need to do your thing?"

"Yeah."

Her friend stayed quiet as she shut her eyes and went into the mind of the kidnapper. She had to imagine it, predict their thought processes, and _be_ that person. When her eyes snapped open again, the room was devoid of Austin and all the other officers. Through her imagination, the house was shrouded in darkness as it was midnight when the kidnapping happened.

She tread carefully, like the kidnapper, towards the twins' room. It was all very easy. 'How?' Ally whispered to herself. A glance to her right gave her the answer. The housekeeper had been taken care of permanently. The girls' parents were out on a business trip, so they didn't have to worry about that.

They opened the door to the bedroom wide open, and there they were-the twin girls. The twins were less than ten years old, with long brown hair that was adorable when paired with their blue eyes. Sleeping peacefully in their beds, the girls did not suspect a thing. They woke them up and told them exactly what happened, and what they wanted them to do. The children, scared out of their mind, followed every order without uttering a word.

The kidnapper had led them out of the house, into a car, and-

"Excuse me Miss, what are you doing?"

Ally was brought back from her journey through the mind of the kidnapper. A young officer, probably new to the job, was regarding her with curiosity and suspicion.

"She's Detective Dawson," Austin chimed in, appearing out of nowhere, "here to solve the crime and save the day?"

A look of recognition flashed through the officer's eyes. "Right, Inspector George mentioned you. Sorry if I interrupted anything."

"It's okay, I was about to finish anyway."

The officer scurried off as Austin turned to Ally. "Find anything?"

"Not really," Ally sighed, "they were smart. Knew how to get the kids to cooperate because there's no signs of struggle. The room's so neat that they might as well have just went to the bathroom. But why would they go through all that trouble when he had already killed the staff?"

"Soft spot for kids?" Austin guessed as he walked outside with Ally to see the inspector.

"No, I think they didn't want to hurt the twins. They were special for some reason, and not because they're rich. He or she wanted to keep them in good condition. But why?"

Austin and Ally reported their findings to the head inspector. They were both going back to their shared apartment when Ally received a text. The text contained a link, and Ally excused herself to her room. In the privacy of her own bedroom, she tapped it and it led her to a video.

While it buffered, Austin shouted to her from the hallway. "I need to go out for a bit. Are you going to be okay?"

"Yeah," she replied.

"Bye then. Maybe you'll change your mind about those lessons when I come back!"

Ally laughed at that. "Right!" It was a long running thing between them. Austin offered to give her some self defense training, and Ally refused. She considered it unnecessary for her since she'll always be two steps ahead of whatever she has to face. Ally's the brains, Austin's the brawn.

The door was shut loudly just as the video started. After watching the video, Ally's mind was racing again. It was a video from the kidnapper. The girls were in it too. The man had told her not to alert the authorities and that he wanted to meet her alone. But that wasn't the worst of it.

Ally knew the kidnapper.


	2. Chapter 2

Ally decided to go alone. Technically, anyway. The detective knew the man, and she knew that he could track her activity. Any calls, texts, emails sent to the police would be seen by him. So she took other precautions because she's not stupid enough to just jump into the dangerous situation. It's just not her style. Besides, there's other ways of being safe.

After preparing her back up plan, she left to go to the destination he had told her in the video. The house was not far from where her apartment, and it was nerving to know that he was so close to her. The door swung wide open just as she was about to knock on the door. Ellen, one of the twin girls, had opened the door for her. The girl's face was streaming with tears, and she spoke in a frail whimper.

"Welcome home, mom."

Ally moved to put Ellen behind her and out of the house when the kidnapper popped out from around a wall. Her heart stopped for a split second at the sight of this man.

"Alexander." She addressed him evenly. "What are you doing?"

Alexander just smiled. "You've always called me Alex. You're back! I made dinner and Alice set the tables herself-come join us."

"Eva is in there," whispered Ellen to Ally.

Ally nodded and followed Alexander. She couldn't leave without the other twin. He, Alexander, had Eva on his left, still smiling without a care at Ally. The man sat down at the head of the table, and gestured for Ally to sit at the other end. Ellen and Eva took the seats on the sides. The table was laden with Ally's favourite food. She narrowed her eyes in suspicion.

Ally tried to get some answers. "Why did you capture them?"

"Capture them?" Alexander looked almost offended by her wording. "You make it sound it bad. I just needed to borrow them, that's all. Can't you see how well they fit into our family?"

That's when Ally realized that to any onlooker, the scene would have looked like a family having a normal dinner. The twins had brown hair like hers and blue eyes like Alexander. They were physically the product of Ally and Alexander.

The detective leaned over to Ellen to murmur to her. "Get yourself and your sister out of the house, now. There's a blue car waiting outside with the doors open. Get in, lock the doors, and wait."

"But will you be okay?" Ellen protested. Ally smiled at her innocent concern.

"I'll be fine," she told the girl, "I came prepared. Help will come soon, alright? Hang on."

Ellen quickly hugged Ally and ran with Eva out of the house, leaving the door wide open. Ally let out a relieved breath as she saw them safe in the car. Now she just had to deal with Alexander.

Alexander rambled on, ignoring the absence of the twins. "Alice and Alana, daughters of Alex and Ally. I thought we would name them that, and continue the whole Al-first name thing. Remember Alex and Ally? We used to be the ultimate detective duo."

"There is and was no Alex and Ally." The detective did not blink at the anger now on his face, still observing him with a steely gaze. "You do know you're spending the rest of your life in jail for this, right?"

"That's funny. You said the exact same thing last time, and look at me now. Out like the free man I should have been."

"You killed someone."

"It was for justice."

"No, no it wasn't. You ended someone's life and _enjoyed_ it. I saw it, and you know it."

Her former friend wore a crazed grin. "I'm still the same Alex. You cannot deny the fact that I was your backup then. I was even there for your first case. The new guy you have now is nothing compared to me." And then Alex pulled out a gun from under the table and pointed it at Ally. "Maybe you'll understand when you're dead."

Ally breathed heavily in fear as she was faced with a lunatic with a gun. Of all the possible outcomes, she did not anticipate this. The detective was supposed to deduce and solve the mysteries, in safety. She was not supposed to be the target. Ally came prepared with a plan, but she did not consider this variable in the equation. This man was truly insane if he was speaking calmly one second and pulling out guns the next.

"Let's be reasonable here." Ally's voice wavered a bit. "I'm sure we can work this out."

Alexander looked at her with a strange look of crazed adoration. "But I love you so much, Ally. We were supposed to be Ally and Alex! The perfect couple. I love you, I love you, I love you..."

The detective felt déjà vu as she watched him break down again just like he did years ago. She felt helpless while Alex, who had been her friend since childhood, went crazy. They _were _the best back then. Alex was just as smart as Ally was, and they were invincible as a pair. Unfortunately, Alex was one of those people who eventually can't handle it and lose it. The fact that he harbored feelings for Ally did not clear her conscience either. It could have happened, but by the time he was locked in a cell, he had already changed too much.

Ally tried to not look rejecting as the man chanted the words to himself over and over again. She needed to get that gun away from him, before he really loses control on the trigger. Come on Ally, think...

"Why don't you love me?"

'Because you're a maniac.'

Ally gulped. This was the worst. "I do love you, Alex."

She internally winced at the nickname she used to fondly call him. Hopefully she sounded sincere. Whatever he saw, it tricked him. His expression was one of joy as he stood up, and stepped closer. Ally resisted the urge to panic. The man was tracing the tip of his gun along her neck, collarbone, and her heart. The detective struggled to breathe evenly as he leisurely drew invisible patterns where her heart was.

"Do you mean it?" He whispered in her ear. She shuddered in terror, but replied breathlessly.

"I do."

"I love that. I can't wait to hear you say it at our wedding!"

As if. Ally knew she had to keep manipulating him until the time was right. So she endured.

"Well we don't have to wait that long, you know? We could have it right now. Husband and wife..." Alexander sighed happily. There he went, off to Lala-land.

A small movement was seen from the corner of her eye, and Ally almost cried tears of joy. Her plan was finally getting back on track. Austin was there, in the doorway. Her friend pressed a finger to his lips and motioned that he was going to go behind Alexander and disarm him. Ally gave a very small nod and held her breath in anticipation.

Austin made his way to the unstable man. Everything was going smoothly, but then the floor creaked. Alexander was strangely calm (again, that psycho) as he turned to Austin.

"Shit."

Alexander's face twisted in displeasure. "You're my replacement? How disappointing."

"Hey!" Austin objected defiantly.

"Timing, Austin." Ally hissed. "Now's not the time to let your ego get bruised."

Then Alexander pointed the gun at Ally. "I was hoping it wouldn't come to this, but curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal. Oh well." He shrugged. "We will both die and have a beautiful wedding in death."

Alexander flicked the safety off and time slowed down for Ally. He was going to shoot her for real now. Her mind raced. Will he blow her brains out, or will it be through her heart? Ally did not want to find out.

She ran. There's a smaller chance of getting shot when you're running, and even though she was a bit too close to him, Ally was going to take the chance. But Alexander didn't have any chance of shooting her, nope.

Austin had gotten right in front of her, and taken the bullet.

* * *

**Thank you for all the favs, follows, and reviews! I hope this story lives up to your expectations :) **

**I was aiming for showing how Austin helps out Ally+a bit of Ally's past, but it kind of got off track. It would have been so much easier to have Ally punch Alexander and run, but I wanted to have her be awesome in a different way?...Idk. I'm pretty sure a lot of things in this chap don't make sense. This chapter's been rewritten more times than I can count and school's driving me crazy right now soooo yeah. Here you go, hope it wasn't too terrible! **


	3. Chapter 3

"How are you feeling?"

Ally and Austin twirled on the floor with the other dancers. It was a pretentious looking ballroom, with high painted ceilings and sparkling crystal chandeliers. A small band played their instruments for the guests in the suits and flowing dresses. The detective was still anxious about Austin's health.

Austin shrugged in reply as they danced a waltz. "I'm okay, stop worrying."

"It's not easy," Ally kept on staring at the bulge in the otherwise fitting suit Austin was wearing. The injury was particularly noticeable because of the bandages he needed. She felt the pangs of guilt whenever she looked at them, or when he would give a small wince. Her friend thought she wouldn't notice when he winced in pain, but she did. Ally was a detective, after all. "You didn't have to take that bullet..."

"You need to stop blaming yourself for this. I knew the consequences, okay? I took it and would do it again right now if I have to." Austin took a deep breath. "You're my best friend, and I don't want to see you hurt at all. Cheer up a bit!"

"Ditto. I'd do the same for you too." Ally's smile matched Austin's while they glided across the room. She was immensely grateful for such a great friend. "We'll see who can get to the bullets faster next time."

Austin let out a roar of laughter. "There's the Ally I know. You've been moping around ever since I got shot...you know what would make me feel better right now?"

The detective's gaze snapped to his. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, nothing. Not spitting out blood or anything. I'm fine, I just want out of this fancy party."

"You scared me there." Ally's heart was still hammering against her chest. "And they want to thank us for rescuing Ellen and Eva."

"Couldn't I just stay at home? I've been shot and all that. You could have just come here alone. I'm just your right hand man anyway; they want the famous detective."

"You're just as important as I am-you took that bullet. Besides, they would have waited until you were 'fully recovered' and then have this party thing. There was no way you could have gotten out of this." The detective smirked.

"True..."

Ally recognized the look on his face. "If you have something you want to say, just say it."

"Am I just your replacement for that crazy guy Alex?"

A look of shock came over Ally's face at his words. Ally stumbled in her steps and almost stomped on Austin's foot. She composed herself before answering firmly. "No, you're not. I am not using you to fill his place, you are you, and I wouldn't have anyone else."

"Right."

Ally let out a noise of frustration. "Austin-"

The music stopped and Mr. and Mrs. Wyner called everyone's attention to the front. Ally flashed Austin a look saying _I'll talk to you later_. The rich owners of the butchering company were the picture of elegance. Mrs. Wyner smiled at everyone before speaking. "First of all, thank you everyone for joining us. I hope you have an enjoyable night. Tonight, we have put together this gathering to thank two very essential people who saved our daughters. Austin and Ally, would you please come up here?"

The couple did what they were told to as the crowd clapped politely. Mr. Wyner gestured for Ellen and Eva to approach the detective and companion. The two girls held little boxes in their hands and handed it to them. Ally hugged the twins and muttered a quick thank you. They looked so much better since she last saw them. Honestly, this was the best part of what she did. She loved protecting people.

Mrs. Wyner spoke again. "This is only a fraction of our gratitude, but I hope you find it to your liking. We could never repay you for what you have done. Thank you so much."

Everyone else cheered and clapped loudly. "Please enjoy the rest of the night, everyone!" Mr. Wyner said, "The dancing will continue shortly after some performances from some very talented people."

Two people came out with a large box behind them. They introduced themselves as magicians, and Austin leaned over lower to whisper into Ally's ear. "Typical trick. They're going to make a big show of how normal and empty the box is, and then have the other person go inside. Some swords are stabbed into the box and the person walks out completely unscratched. Geez, you'd think rich people would hire some better magicians with more original tricks."

Ally just smiled while the magicians did exactly what Austin predicted. They spoke of how ordinary the box was, and showed it by turning it this way and that. One of them grabbed the handle and opened the door to show the empty interior. However, it was not empty. There was already someone inside.

Along with some swords and long objects pierced through him.

Shrill screams filled the room as the guests were put into a frenzied panic. Ally strode to the box containing the corpse with purpose. Austin tried to calm everyone down.

"Shut up, people!" He yelled.

Mr. and Mrs. Wyner stood horrified. The security was overwhelmed by the mass of people going in all directions. They could probably trample over each other at this point, so Austin and the security were desperately trying to stop their panic.

Ally tugged the collar of a magician to her. "Did you two do this?"

"No, I would never!" The magician was no doubt being honest. She was shaky and as stunned as everyone else, so she couldn't have done this. Ally nodded and turned to the box itself.

It was such a bloody mess that Ally was not surprised to hear retching in the background. The detective inspected the box from every angle, before closing her eyes. It was time to do what she did best-deduce and solve the problem.


	4. Chapter 4

"What have you got so far?" Inspector George asked Ally.

The two were standing just outside of the laboratory in which the forensics team were running tests on the victim's body. Austin had gone home after Ally insisted he get his rest. He got shot, after all, so it would be best for him to avoid any stress. It was stressful enough after the body had been found in the magician's box for everyone. People were panicking and everything had been just chaotic. Ally wouldn't mind getting some sleep, but she settled for sips of her coffee.

"It would help once we know the identity of the victim, but from what I could tell, there was no confrontation. Perhaps it was a surprise attack from behind that knocked out the victim, because I saw no signs of struggle. I doubt the victim _consciously_ went with it willingly either. That would have been painful," Ally winced at the thought have having multiple things go through her body, "it was probably not an accident, so I think it's safe to assume we have a killer on our hands."

The door to the lab swung open and a familiar face appeared. "The tests are done!" The head scientist moved her gaze to Ally. "Oh hey, Ally!"

Ally grinned at her friend. "Hey Trish!"

"We haven't talked in a while," Trish began as they went into the lab where the body was, "do you want to go out for lunch or something sometime? You haven't told me about your newest case yet."

"Sure," Ally agreed.

"Awesome! Back to ol' Patrick here. We did a search on him, turns out he was a guest in the party. He was the CEO of a large business for publishing books. Patrick Cipriano, in addition to being in charge of publishing books, is also an author of a popular teen novel series. Healthy young man, and he had a bright future ahead of him. Beats me why he was murdered." The head scientist shrugged.

George nodded to Trish. "Thank you. So Ally, do you think we're looking at a murder for money?"

"No," Ally said, "something just tells me it wasn't for money. Why bother making a spectacle of it? Does anyone know if he had any family to inherit the money, just in case?"

"Oh, I've got some info. No family, he's a bachelor! Orphaned as a child, and there's no known relatives here-weird," replied Trish, looking at a computer screen.

"He most likely didn't keep in touch with them."

"Bit unusual," commented the inspector.

The detective yawned. "Alright, if that's all, I'll be going home. You should too, George-you've been up all night just like me."

"I'll send you updates if we find anything."

"Bye Ally! I'll text you the details for lunch later."

Ally waved goodbye to them as she walked out the door. She took a taxi back to her apartment, her mind trying to make sense of this new puzzle. However, she was way too tired to function properly. A long nap will hopefully do her some good. She had been up since last night, and it was now five in the morning.

The detective tried to gently and quietly shut the door so she would not wake Austin up. She spotted him laying on the couch, fast asleep. He surprised Ally when he stirred and opened his eyes.

"You're finally back," he said.

"Yeah, it took a while. Were you waiting for me?" Austin should have been sleeping on his own bed, not the couch.

Austin ran a hand through his messy hair. "Yup."

"You shouldn't have," Ally frowned, "Well, now that I'm back, _I'm_ going to sleep. See you later."

"Have fun! I'm going to eat something."

Ally changed into more comfortable clothing once she was in her room. She fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

* * *

The detective woke up to the sound of knocking. "Ally, George just called! He's got a list of some people the victim is familiar with, and thought you might have wanted it."

"And you couldn't have just told me later?" Ally groaned.

"It's twelve in the afternoon, Ally. You need to wake up!"

A glance at her clock confirmed it. Damn, was it noon already? "Fine, I'll be out in a minute."

The detective efficiently got dressed and came out of her bedroom feeling much more refreshed. She was more excited for the case now that she was up and going. "Austin," she called, "are you coming with me?"

"Of course!"

Inspector George had sent the list to Ally, and Ally looked through it on her phone. The list had the people's names, along with their contact information, and type of relationship with the late Patrick Cipriano. There were business partners, co-workers, friends, and surprisingly, a therapist. Maybe Patrick had not been so healthy after all.

Her phone vibrated from a text. It was from Trish, and it was about the lunch that they were going to have together.

_Trish:_  
_How does dinner at 6:00 sound? Feli's? Sorry, I have a thing going on so I can't do lunch._

_Ally:_  
_Sounds great. And no problem, I only just woke up. Cya :)_

"Ready to go?" Austin asked Ally.

Ally nodded. "By the way, you're going to be alone tonight. I'm going out for dinner with Trish tonight."

"Aw..."

"You can handle it. Let's go."

* * *

"He has always been nice and friendly. I don't see how he would have had any enemies."

The person Austin and Ally were interrogating right now was a co-worker of Patrick's. Noreen, his assistant, showed no signs of being the killer so far. The detective paid close attention to each person they interviewed, as anyone is a suspect. They first asked about Patrick, the last time they were with Patrick, their relationship with him, and anything unusual that happened before he got killed.

Unfortunately, they were both hitting a dead end. Everyone they spoke to said the same thing: Patrick had been normal and kind, and there wasn't anything out of place or different about him before he died. No clues or leads have been found so far, and this was frustrating for Ally.

"Are you sure nothing weird was happening before he, um, passed away?" Austin questioned Noreen.

Noreen shook her head. "Nothing. Shouldn't the police be doing this?"

"We're...part of a special department. When was the last time you saw him?"

"Since I'm his assistant-yesterday. It was like any other day. We'll get off work, and he'll head to his daily appointments."

Now this piqued Ally's interest.

"Appointments?" She said.

"Yes, I arrange them for him," Noreen explained, "Patrick has always had, ah, anxiety problems. He didn't like to talk about it, but the appointments with Doctor Chelson helped."

Ally's mind flashed back to the list. So he's the therapist? "Interesting."

The detective and her friend made eye contact and then they both got up. "Thank you for your time," said Austin, "we really appreciate it."

Noreen wiped at her eye. "No, thank _you_. I hope you two find the killer who wronged such a good man."

The duo nodded and left the offices of the book publishing company.

"Was she?..." Austin started.

Ally confirmed sadly. "Yes, she was. There was a ring on her, and she took it off. It was likely too painful to bear, but she's worn it for so long the ring is kind of imprinted on her finger. They were engaged for a long time."

"Observant as always, detective."

"It's my job," muttered Ally, looking at her watch, "I have to go meet Trish at Feli's now-it's five o'clock already. Bye!"

"Bye!"

* * *

The detective arrived at Feli's Restaurant just in time. She spotted Trish at their usual table by the windows, and made her way to her friend.

"Hey!" She greeted, arms open for a hug.

The scientist hugged back. "Hey, how are you?"

"I've been busy," Ally replied, sitting down at the table, "with my cases and all that. How about you?"

"It's the same as usual. You know, inspecting bodies, and getting the occasional surprise. The one today was brutal. Can you believe someone actually did that?"

Ally opened up the menu despite the fact that she would just order her usual. "Sadly, I'm kind of used to it. It happens when you're out in the field. No offense, though."

"None taken."

Ally and Trish had studied together at university. Although they both took criminology and forensics, they went their separate ways. Trish preferred to work in the safety of a lab, running tests and such. She excelled at it and had risen up as head scientist in a short period of time. Meanwhile, Ally took her knowledge and took it to help the good guys get the bad guys. Those are very different paths, but they both kept in touch and remained best friends.

"So about your latest case with the twins..." Trish started, "I heard a rumor that Alex was...?"

Ally sighed. Of course Trish confronted her right away. "The one who kidnapped the girls, yes."

"Are you okay? I can't imagine, seeing him after all these years-"

"I'm fine." Trish had known Alex too, but wasn't as close to him as Ally was.

"Funny how things just happen," said Trish, "I don't think you've solved your newest case yet?"

"Nope, we're in the progress of talking to some people he knew. We haven't gotten a good lead, but his assistant told us something about how he needed to go to therapy."

"Who would have thought?"

A familiar waiter passed by, took their orders, and left to take another customer's orders. Ally's eyes followed the waiter, and recognized the customer when her eyes landed on him. It was Doctor Chelson, Patrick's therapist. The detective leaned closer to her friend.

She spoke in a whisper. "Speaking of therapy, the doctor himself is right behind us."

"Wow, your work never ends. Are you going to ditch me now to talk to that guy?"

"Um..." Ally felt guilty about leaving her friend already.

Trish rolled her eyes. "Just go, but you owe me."

"Thanks," Ally grinned, "I'll make it up to you I promise!"

* * *

**Yay for Trish! I cut it off here because if I added the chat with the doctor, it would have been long. This case is going to last longer compared to the first one, because the first one was just a brief intro case. Hope you guys enjoy it.**

**Who do you think is the murderer?**


	5. Chapter 5

"Doctor Chelson?"

The man himself looked up to see Ally standing before him. "That would be me," he replied.

"Hello, I'm Ally Dawson." She stuck out her hand for a handshake. "It's nice to meet you."

Doctor Chelson's eyes twinkled. "The pleasure's all mine! I've heard of you, detective. Please, take a seat and join me."

"You've heard of me?" Ally's tone was curious, perhaps the Wyners had failed to keep the situation under the wraps.

"Of course I have! You are quite the topic of conversation in psychiatric circles. We doctors are fascinated by your mind! The level of empathy you have that allows you to think and feel like the wanted criminal is incredible. Not to mention the fact that your IQ is very high."

"Thank you," Ally smiled, "and well, it's a good thing I'm on this side."

The doctor chuckled in response. "Yes indeed, you would be an unbeatable criminal."

Ally thanked him in good humour. A waitress came by to set down plates of steaming hot food, and the two adults thanked her. She figured Trish must have sent her order to this table after she left. The doctor and the detective made small talk while eating their dinner.

"Not that I do not enjoy your company," said the doctor, wiping tears from Ally's retelling of a particularly bizarre but funny case, "but is there another reason that you want to speak to me?"

She grinned sheepishly. "You should be a detective, Doctor. Yes, I want to talk to you about your former patient Patrick Cipriano."

"I see. He got into a nasty accident, didn't he?" The atmosphere immediately turned sombre at his solemn words.

Ally nodded. "He was violently murdered last night, and we are trying our best to find the culprit. Can you tell me about him, and anything that was suspicious before he died?"

"Patrick had an odd anxiety disorder combined with other things. He suffered from sleepless nights due to night terrors, and hallucinated during the worst of times. Writing those novels helped him, managing the company distracted him, but it wasn't enough. He came to be on the suggestion made by his assistant, Noreen's a mutual friend of ours, and I gave him treatment. But..."

"But?"

"He got better, but not in the long term. There was a period of time where I believed he had been cured, but no. He eventually couldn't help becoming what he had to be."

Ally observed the doctor with a careful eye. He showed no hate or anything when speaking of Patrick. There was a hint of sadness when he spoke of his patient's fate. She highly doubted he had maliciously murdered Patrick, but...something just seemed off. The detective knew when someone was hiding something.

But just as she was about to dig deeper, her phone vibrated in her pocket. Cursing, she excused herself as she took the device out.

_Austin:_  
_Found something, come home if you can._

She apologized to the doctor. "I'm so sorry, but I have to leave."

"It's quite alright," the doctor responded, waving it off, "feel free to find me if you need anything else. Or just drop by my office some time! As mentioned before, I have a professional curiosity on how your brain works."

Ally accepted his card, and then they bid their farewells. She pondered what could had been found while she went back to their apartment. The 'interrogation' with Doctor Chelson had left her with both answers and questions. It cleared things up and caused confusion at the same time. How did he 'become what he had to be'? What was it anyway? If only the doctor hadn't spoke in such a cryptic way.

"I'm home!" She shouted as she shut the door behind her, "this better be good!"

Austin poked his head out from another room. The detective noticed he looked a bit greener than usual. He said, "Yeah, it's definitely good."

Ally joined him and saw that some black and white video was playing on his laptop. A glance at the corner told her that it was from last night, around the time of the party. "Is this?..."

"Security camera footage, yeah." Austin rubbed at his eyes in exhaustion. "I watched the whole thing, up until the magician's box was moved out."

And then the duo watched as the box was moved into the room. The magician pushed against the wall and left. Austin fast forwarded to a man's figure walking into the room. Ally studied his formal wear closely, and identified the figure as Patrick Cipriano. He was walking sort of drunkenly towards the magician's box. There seemed to be no one else there besides him.

"Here comes the best part," muttered Austin sarcastically.

Ally watched in both horror and fascination as Patrick grabbed the magician's sword that was to be put through the box, and thrust it through himself. He raised his arms in triumph, and Ally could hear him shouting "woo!" through the speakers. The sword stuck up from his torso, and Ally could see black liquid gushing out of the wound. It was a good thing the video was in black and white.

"What the hell?" The Patrick in the footage continued to put all of the swords and long objects through his body. He seemed to feel not pain, but joy when he stabbed himself. At last, when he used all of the props, he opened the box, got inside, and closed it. Fast forward hours later, the magician's assistant rolled it out of the room and probably into the ball room where everyone was.

"Crazy, right?"

Doctor Chelson's words repeated in Ally's mind. _He became what he had to be..._So he was destined to become a human kabob like in a barbecue?  
_  
_"Yeah, pretty crazy." The detective replied absentmindedly. "I have a theory, but I need to confirm it. I think I have a doctor's appointment to go to. Do you want to come?"

"Of course. I didn't know you aren't feeling well?"

"Oh no," Ally smiled, "I'm fine. I don't think the doctor is though."

* * *

**Sorry about the overdue update! Something came up and I couldn't write anything for a long time. But it's here! I hope you guys enjoyed it-expect some action next chapter. Leave a review maybe? Pretty please? I haven't gotten much response lately and I'm hoping people actually read this story.**

**MoodBerg: Yes, he will. I'm not sure how he will make an appearance yet though. :)**


	6. Chapter 6

"Dr. Chelson is a successful psychiatrist, but before that he was the type of doctor you go to for check ups." Austin read from his phone. Ally had asked him to look up Dr. Chelson while she drove to his office. "Again, very successful. He changed routes because he 'developed a fascination with the human brain'."

Ally frowned. "That's it?"

"Oh wait, there's more! It's not from a trustworthy source though, but there's some rumours about him using psychiatric driving for his own interests?"

The detective's hands gripped the steering wheel tightly.

"Is there something I should know?" Austin asked, glancing at her hands.

"For now, no. I want to confirm it before we do anything rash. Just," Ally sighed, "trust me, okay?"

Austin nodded.

They arrived at the address of his office that on his business card. The building was modern and pristine, with white stone walls. Austin and Ally were about to enter, when the door opened to reveal Dr. Chelson on the other side. He looked at them in surprise, but it slipped away when he recognized Ally. He gave her a polite smile.

"Well, what a pleasant surprise! Hello."

"Good evening, do you mind if I take you up on that appointment?"

The doctor swung the door wide open and nodded his head towards a long hall. "Of course."

The group walked past the reception area, through the hallway, and into his study. Several comfortable looking chairs were at the center of the tastefully decorated room. They sat down at the wave of Dr. Chelson's hand.

"You have a nice study," complimented Austin.

"Thank you...Mr. Moon, I presume?"

The detective's companion gave him a grin. "Just Austin. It's nice to meet you."

Dr. Chelson shook his hand and then turned to Ally. Ally's heart was beating fast in excitement and she had been trying to stay calm whilst the two exchanged pleasantries.

"So, how can I help you?" The doctor asked.

"I'd like to know about Patrick Cipriano, particularly, his treatment under your care."

After she finished her sentence, she immediately put all her attention on the doctor's reaction. The slightest quick intake of breath or fidgeting could give him away. However, the doctor remained the same except he now looked much more tired. The added stress in his expression made him look older.

The doctor got up, and Austin tensed, inching towards Ally. But Dr. Chelson simply walked over to one of his cupboards and shuffled around. "Can I get you anything to drink? I have some exquisite wine."

Ally shot a look at Austin's protective stance over her, and shook her head. He hesitantly relaxed.

'Trust me.'

"Absolutely," Ally told the doctor. Austin hummed in agreement. Dr. Chelson set out some glasses and poured the rich red liquid into them. He took a deep gulp, while Austin and Ally sipped lightly out of politeness. The doctor seemed to make up his mind on whatever he had been thinking of, and at long last broke the silence.

"You may have heard of rumours about me doing psychiatric driving."

Austin tensed again.

Dr. Chelson continued. "Psychiatric driving is driving, or changing the behaviour of the patient. Some believe it is unethical, but sometimes, it's necessary. Patrick Cipriano..." He drank from his glass."was subjected to psychiatric driving."

"But doctor, as you've said, it's highly unethical," Ally said.

"Not to mention a bit of highly illegal," added Austin.

Ally continued to expect signs of the doctor losing his cool. The doctor stayed calm and tired. Again, that look of resignation. She did not understand why he was this way, even after confessing that he was possibly linked to Patrick's death. Unlike other serial killers and whatnot that Ally had confronted, he did not explain his crimes righteously or attack them.

Austin was also confused. His body was tight, ready to spring into action when the doctor broke. "Dr. Chelson, do you know how Patrick Cipriano had died?"

"No."

"He put swords through himself," Austin continued, "seemed to enjoy it, and then stuffed himself into the magician's box. Do you have any clue as to how this could have happened?"

"Like I've said," he paused, "he was put through the procedure of psychiatric driving."

"Why?" Ally piped up.

"I have always wanted the best for my patients. Patrick Cipriano was going through a lot of pain, so I ended it. I set him free."

The detective gulped. "You ended his pain but ending his life?"

Dr. Chelson nodded. "In a way, yes, I caused it."

"Sir," Austin interrupted, now standing, "I'm sorry, but you are arrested for the murder of Patrick Cipriano."

"Wait."

Austin stopped looking for and taking out the handcuffs, and raised an eyebrow at Ally in question.

Ally's eyes were on the doctor. "How did you do it? How did you _drive_ him to kill himself in such a painful way?"

"At first, just therapy. By saying certain things to someone, they will begin to think a certain way; get specific ideas. And then psychedelic drugs. I injected it into him with a needle, and it literally set his mind free."

"How did you gain access to these drugs?" Austin inquired. This doctor was adding more and more to his list of crimes.

"I was and am a doctor with connections and experience."

Ally felt uneasy. "So you told him to stab himself over and over again?"

"No, actually. I simply told him to do whatever he wished."

"Human kabob," muttered Austin.

Dr. Chelson shut his eyes. "Arrest me, I do not care. I only did what was best for him. Although, I remember he had someone waiting for him that night after our appointment. Odd that they didn't notice. Perhaps you should look into that. It was a woman, his assistant, I believe?"

Austin and Ally exchanged looks of confusion. "Noreen?"

* * *

The duo saw to it that the doctor was arrested and handed over to the police. The elderly man did not put up a fight, and it was quite sad to watch. He had wanted to help. But, Ally had to remind herself, he had manipulated the patient, and ultimately caused his death. That did not help.

"We need to talk to Noreen now, right?" Austin reappeared at Ally's side after speaking briefly to the police officers.

"Yes."

Austin looked at his phone. "It's really late right now, should we?..."

"By tomorrow, she would have heard of the doctor's arrest and figured everything out. If she had any hand in this, she would take action." Ally replied intelligently.

"Okay then."

Ally called Noreen and asked if she could meet again. Noreen agreed, with a bit of suspicion in her voice. When she asked why, Ally told her it was better if it was in person rather on the phone. Ally said it so it was implied that Ally had just found out how Patrick had died, and that she had news of him. In theory, if Noreen _had_ done something, she would think that the detective was one step behind, and that Ally was only there to deliver the bad news.

In reality, Ally knew more than that.

* * *

**Again, pretty short chapter and it is a bit late too-sorry! I found it hard to write this chapter, idk if it was lack of inspiration or something else but I wanted to get this chapter up for you guys :) I decided to wrap up this case next chapter and maybe start a new one next chapter. It'll be longer and better, hopefully.**

**Thanks for reading and let me know what you think!**


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